Son-in-law held for killing mother-in-law with axe in Netrakona

An elderly woman was allegedly hacked to death with an axe by her son-in-law during a dispute over land in Durgapur upazila of Netrakona on Saturday night (August 22).

The victim, Sahara Khatun, 58, wife of Abdul Motaleb of Phulpur village in Chandigarh union, was allegedly attacked during an argument with her son-in-law, Shahed Biswas alias Rafiqul Islam, over the possession and cultivation of farmland.

According to police and local residents, Shahed had married Sahara's daughter about 12 years ago and had been living at his in-laws' home. At one point, his father-in-law reportedly registered around 200 decimals of agricultural land in his name. After his first wife died, Shahed remarried but continued living at the same house.

A dispute later developed between Shahed and his in-laws over handing over possession of the land. Several local mediations were held, and the parties had recently agreed to allow Shahed to cultivate the land during the current season.

However, tensions persisted. Around 8pm on Saturday, an argument over the land allegedly escalated, and Shahed struck Sahara on the head with an axe, killing her on the spot, locals said.

Residents subsequently detained Shahed and handed him over to police.

Police recovered Sahara's body and are preparing to send it for autopsy.

Shaker Ahmed, officer-in-charge (OC) of Durgapur police station, said, "Police were dispatched immediately after receiving the report and that legal action would be taken."